The present invention relates to a fastening element magazine strip. These types of fastening element magazine strips are used, for example, in hand-operated drive-in power tools or tackers, which are used to drive the fastening elements magazined in the fastening element magazine strip into a workpiece.
A fastening element magazine strip is known from U.S. 2008/0121678A1 in which fastening elements are arranged on a carrier strip, which is composed of several carrier segments connected to one another. Projections are arranged on each carrier segment of the carrier strip, which project perpendicular to a plane spanning from the carrier strip to both sides of the carrier strip. The projections in this case are larger in a first extension direction parallel to a longitudinal axis of the fastening elements than in a second extension direction running perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the fastening elements. The projections make an additional function possible in which a counter slider of an adjusting device of a drive-in tool can engage on the projections so that the fastening element magazine strip can be displaced against the force of a transport spring element.
With this known fastening element magazine strip, special guide grooves must be provided for the projections to guide the carrier segments provided with projections in a bolt guide of a drive-in tool.
The object of the present invention is therefore to make available a fastening element magazine strip which makes an additional function possible and in which the cited disadvantages are avoided.
Accordingly, the projections are configured in at least one direction transverse to their longitudinal extension to be bendable, preferably elastically bendable, so that the projections in the region of the bolt guide of a drive-in power tool can be folded down or bent back during a drive-in process without hindering the drive-in process or strip transport. Separate guide grooves for the projections on the bolt guide are no longer necessary.
The projections are advantageously arranged on the carrier segments, wherein respectively at least one recess is provided on the outer circumference of the carrier segments into which the projections can be folded. When a carrier segment is sheared off the fastening element magazine strip during a drive-in process and guided though the bolt guide of a drive-in power tool, the projections can fold into the recess and do not hinder the movement of the carrier segment in the bolt guide.
Moreover, it is advantageous if the length of the projections corresponds to 2 to 8 times of their first width, thereby producing the elastic flexibility, in particular in the case of a carrier strip made of plastic, through the geometry of the projections.
Elastic articulations are configured advantageously on starting points of the projections on the carrier strip, and these articulations are responsible for an elastic flexibility and are technically easy to create (e.g., by tapering the material).
It is also favorable if the radial protrusion of the projections beyond the guide diameter corresponds to at least 0.15 to 0.7 times the guide diameter, thereby, on the one hand, rendering a secure guidance on the guide surface of the magazine possible and, on the other hand, and making an additional function possible, e.g., a radial outer contact surface for toothing of a transport rack of a magazine or a radial outer contact surface for a counter slider of the transport slider of a magazine.
Particularly when using a fastening element magazine strip in a magazine with rack transport, it is advantageous if the projections are arranged on each side of the carrier strip respectively in pairs.
Furthermore, the projections are advantageously configured isometrically in cross-section perpendicular to their longitudinal extension so that they are elastically bendable in at least two directions perpendicular or transverse to their longitudinal extension. The isometric arrangement of the cross-section does not have to extend in this case over the entire length of the projections, but can be limited, for example, to the articulation or a specific region.
The invention is depicted in several exemplary embodiments in the drawings.